Trump’s COVID-19 Symptoms Could Worsen in the Next Week
Just three days after being taken to Walter Reed Medical Center for COVID-19 treatment, President Trump returned back to the White House.
While Trump’s personal physician, Sean Conley, says, “he’s met or exceeded all standard hospital discharge criteria,” other doctors say his symptoms may only get worse.
“Clinicians should be aware of the potential for some patients to rapidly deteriorate one week after illness onset,” the CDC warns in its clinical guidelines for managing patients with COVID-19.
“It can go in a lot of different directions,” Robert Wachter, chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, said, shortly before the doctors announced that he would return to the White House later in the day. “For the next few days, I’d want him 50 feet away from an ICU, not a helicopter ride.”
There have been conflicting reports on when the President learned he had the highly contagious virus, along with Trump’s treatment and condition during his stay at Walter Reed. It is believed that Trump came in to contact with COVID-19 positive adviser Hope Hicks on Wednesday while traveling to a campaign rally in Minnesota. At the time, Hicks was having symptoms but had not yet been tested. After Hicks tested positive the next day, Trump attended a fundraiser in New Jersey. It was that night that he and first lady Melania tested positive.
Although confirming that the President received oxygen twice while in the hospital over the weekend, which is usually for severe cases of COVID-19, Conley backtracked hours before the President was released on Monday, stating, “He wasn’t short of breath. He wasn’t looking ill. It was more of us trying to anticipate needs and see how he would respond, and in both cases, he came right off. He didn’t need it for very long at all.” The President was prescribed dexamethasone, which is a steroid used in severe cases.
A steroid treatment prescribed to Pres. Trump on Saturday, dexamethasone, has shown to be beneficial in those with severe Covid-19 because it can stop the immune system from going into overdrive. But it’s not recommended for more mild cases of the disease. https://t.co/MZhkcZljuo
— NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) October 5, 2020
Thousands of people have reported problems months after testing positive for COVID-19, so it is unclear how long the President will have symptoms.
I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M. Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 5, 2020
The President’s actions have served as a cautionary tale for all of us to wear masks and, unlike Trump, take the virus seriously. You can read the CDC’s guidelines for more information on how to stay safe during COVID-19.
